World Tree Online: The Order of Epic Grinders: 4th Dive
Page 33
FOR THE SECOND TIME IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD TREE, AN ADVENTURER HAS EVOLVED AND BECOME A DEMIGOD.
TO CELEBRATE THIS CROWNING ACHIEVEMENT, ALL EXPERIENCE GAINS ARE DOUBLED FOR ALL WORLD TREE CITIZENS AND ADVENTURERS FOR THE NEXT 48-HOURS.
WELL DONE AND CONGRATULATIONS!
At least it didn’t name me. That could have been really bad for me. As it was, I had no doubt Epic would not be pleased as I undoubtedly just made it more difficult for him to defeat me. That said, I was the second? Who came before me? I would have thought something like this would have been big news on the forums if anyone else had gotten such an achievement. Seeing there wasn’t really anything I could do about it, I closed the system message. Once again, another message popped up without my permission.
Congratulations Bye-bye Jacko on your achievement, a truly rare feat. As the second adventurer in the World Tree Online to have come so far, you are to be commended and rewarded.
Reward: Level up +5, Title: Child of Issara
‘Woohoo!’ and ‘Doh!’ all in one second. That many level ups were great, I really needed them. It was also terrible. I would need to train all of those stats up and that could take a lot of time.
Congratulations! You’ve reached level 28!
+5 to bonus Holy Spells, +5 Strength, +5 Dexterity, +10 Intellect, +5 Charisma
And then there was the title. I was almost afraid to look. Could this title paint a giant target on my back? I mean, it was basically advertising that I was a Warrior Priest of a Goddess of Justice.
Title: Child of Issara [Temporary] (Increase experience gained for all stats by 100%, Increase experience gain by 50%)
Okay, so maybe leveling my stats wouldn’t be so bad after all. But what did it mean temporary?
I was surprised when the Goddess Issara answered my unasked question, “After level 30, the bonuses will be significantly reduced. I am sorry I could not do more for you.”
I didn’t know when she arrived or if she had always been there, but my Goddess stood before me, leaning heavily on her sheathed sword, and looking more tired than any God or Goddess should.
“You’ve done more than enough,” I said, quickly standing to my feet. “You look exhausted, please, sit,” I added, motioning to the chaise.
The Goddess Issara smiled wanly, then said softly, “I think I shall.”
I quickly helped her to the seat. As she sat, she aged years, once again looking like the aged and weathered crone from one of our first meetings.
“Are you alright?” I asked.
The Goddess Issara took a deep breath and let it out slowly, only to cough harshly at the end. “I will recover. It took a lot out of me to evolve you. To make you my child.”
“So, I’m your child now? Should I call you mother?” I asked facetiously, earning a chortle from the Goddess.
“As far as the World Tree is concerned, you are my child. As for calling me ‘mother’ . . . I prefer you just call me by my name, we are family now,” the Goddess . . . no, Issara stated, seeming to already be growing younger.
“I think I can do that, Issara,” I said. It felt a little strange not to call her ‘Goddess’, but I wasn’t going to argue with her request.
Issara smiled appreciatively. “You have no idea how tiresome it gets when everyone calls you Goddess all the time. Sometimes, I envy you mortals. And then I remember I am a Goddess, and I can do just about anything I want, whenever I want.”
“Like being a bratty child and breaking my limbs for fun?” I grumbled unthinkingly.
“Yes, exactly like that,” Issara said happily, before another coughing fit took away her smile. After the fit passed, she said, “Perhaps I overdid it, changing you the way I did. It was worth it, but it will take awhile for me to recover. I am afraid I will not be able to assist you with the Justice Shop for quite some time. In fact, I will need your help if I am to recover.”
Class Quest Alert: Restoring the Goddess Issara
The Goddess Issara has been greatly weakened after assisting your evolution and now requires your assistance. She requires you to collect divine energy. Collect 500 Sigils of the Goddess Issara
Reward: Experience, Access to the Justice Shop restored
Do you accept this Quest?
Yes
No
I wouldn’t have refused it anyway. Still, 500 sigils were a lot.
Issara smiled again as I accepted. “I will even give you a head start. That ‘Divine Charm’ you purchased. You will not be able to use it with your new class. Return it to me and I will refund the Sigils you already spent.”
That required zero thought, though I did lament the lost free stats. I handed over the charm and as soon as it touched her open palm, the charm shattered into motes of light which were quickly absorbed by the Goddess.
“If you don’t mind, I will take the value off your total,” Issara said, not returning any sigils to me. Without access to the Justice Shop, I didn’t really have any need for them anymore.
“You should take these as well,” I said, handing over the other 33-Sigils I had in my bag, happy to see my quest update from 500-Sigils down to 447-Sigils.
“You are a good man, Bye-bye Jacko. I was right to choose you,” Issara said. “Now, I have kept you here too long already.”
I furrowed my brow. My game clock showed it had only been about an hour since I arrived. It wasn’t that long.
“You were unconscious for a day,” Issara said with a cackle after seemingly reading my mind.
“A day!” I shouted. “Oh man, my friends are going to be freaking out.”
Issara giggled again only to stop for another coughing fit. “Calm down, my mother sent one of her servants to inform your friends.”
“Still, I should get back, I’m sure Rose might try to kill me for disappearing like that,” I said worriedly. I hoped Rose didn’t think I abandoned her or something worse. I hoped my friends and Hurligville survived a day without me.
Issara frowned and tapped her sword to my shin, and with a loud snap, my ankle bent the wrong direction and I fell to the ground. She chided me, “Do not be so conceited. You have good and capable companions. Your presence does not make or break their ability to succeed.”
“Sorry,” I said quickly. “You’re right, you’re right. My friends are more than capable of handling things.”
Issara nodded firmly. With a wave of her hand, my leg snapped back into alignment. I was thanking all the Gods and Goddesses for the muted pain or that would have really hurt. I sat up only to freeze when Issara glared down at me. I was suddenly afraid to move. She spoke harshly, “Bye-bye Jacko, never forget you are not alone. Never forget that the people you have surrounded yourself with are just as capable as you are.” She paused and her face softened, “And most importantly, never forget, you are not alone in this world. You have your friends. You have your love. And you have me. Your burdens are not your burdens alone, never forget that.”
I nodded solemnly as I looked up at her.
“Now, off with you. I need to rest,” Issara said with a wave of her wrinkled hand.
And just like that I was back in Hurligville, sitting on the floor of the temple, and staring up at the altar of the Goddess Issara. There were a couple of gasps of surprise at my sudden appearance, but I ignored them. I needed to find my friends and see what was going on.
But first, I wanted to check my status once again.
Level:
28
Experience:
0.00%
Class: Beginner Holy Dragoon of Issara
HP (Health Points):
5,750/5,750
MP (Mana Points):
4,800/4,800
SP (Stamina Points):
3,500/3,500
Base
Total
Strength:
235
315
- Melee Damage Modifier
+235
+335
Dexterity:
235
/> 311
- Melee Critical Strike Chance
23.50%
31.13%
- Hit Chance
71.75%
75.57%
- Dodge Chance
23.50%
31.13%
Endurance:
460
575
Stamina:
230
350
Intellect:
355
480
- Spell Critical Strike Chance
35.00%
35.00%
Wisdom:
226
271
Charisma:
331
348
Health Regeneration per 10-seconds:
288
288
Mana Regeneration per 10-seconds:
136
166
Stamina Regeneration per 10-seconds:
175
205
Holy Spell Damage Bonus:
240
615
Holy Spell Healing Bonus:
240
399
Carrying Capacity in Lbs.:
1,575
At first glance it didn’t look out of line, but then I noticed my healing bonus was much lower than it should have been. I checked my class information next hoping it might explain the dip in my healing, more specifically the bonuses and armor restrictions.
Armor Restriction: Light Cloth, Light Leather (50 Natural Strength Required), Light Mail (200 Natural Strength Required), Light Plate (400 Natural Strength Required)
Beginner Class Effects: +30% to Holy damage, -60% to Holy spell healing
Armor remained the same, but my bonus damage changed from being a bonus to holy spell damage to a bonus to holy damage. Any holy damage. That was huge. The additional penalty to healing I could have done without. I was never a healer to begin with but now I would be all but useless as a one.
As I was walking out of the temple, I overheard another player talking. “Hey, that new building is about to be finished. I heard it’s an Order House, want to go check it out?” The girl, a Foxgirl, asked another player, an Orcish male. At least, I thought he was an Orc, but he could have been a Boarman like Harrison.
The Orc answered, “Sure, if it is an Order, do you think they are taking in anyone who wants in?” I finally looked at his nameplate,
The Foxgirl,
I didn’t hear much else of the conversation. I needed to run and meet up with my friends. Micaela would never forgive me if I missed her big moment.
As soon as I was outside of the Temple, I activated ‘Sprint’ and ran as fast as my feet would carry me. Within a minute, the site of Micaela’s Order House was in view . . . or almost in view. The small crowd of citizens and players made it hard to see anything other than Olaf’s bull shaped head towering above the crowd.
With a small grin, I decided to give ‘Zephyr of the Open Field’ a test. With a small application of SP and MP, I jumped. And as soon as I did, I was soaring upwards. I cleared the canopy of the trees around Hurligville and kept going until the crowd below turned into a barely discernable blur. When Issara said I could easily move through the air, I had a completely different image in my mind, but this was so much better. ‘Holy Meteor’ from this height would be utter devastation.
As I was falling, rapidly falling at that, I prepared my weapon to use one of the other abilities that came with ‘Zephyr of the Open Field’. The ability to transfer fall damage through my weapon. Something that would usually damage the durability of the weapon, but thanks to my friend Marie, my Spear of Gungnir was unbreakable.
With the space just in front of Olaf as my target landing zone, I hoped the skill would guide me in some way as the ground came closer. With a simple thrust downward, I felt the spear strike first. It was like a counterforce to my momentum, zeroing out my movement in an instant. After the spear hit, I sort of bounced slightly back and landed on my feet, totally unharmed.
“Really?” Olaf asked, looking at me with a chagrined expression.
“What?” I asked, grinning right back. “I didn’t want to wade through the crowd.”
Olaf snorted and rolled his eyes, he asked, “So what? You just decided to make a grand entrance?”
“Well, that and I wanted to test out one of my new skills,” I said. I was excited to tell my friends what happened, but Olaf quickly put a stop to that.
Olaf quickly waved me quiet. “There will be time to tell us about that later. Right now is Mic’s big moment. Come stand with us,” he said, motioning to the open spot next to Rose. Rose who was definitely frowning at me.
I quickly took my place. I whispered just loud enough for Rose to hear. “I’m sorry I disappeared like that. My Goddess didn’t really give me a choice.”
“It’s fine,” Rose said.
It definitely was not fine. I tried to say something more, but Rose silenced me with a motion toward the doors of the nearly completed Order House that were just starting to open.
It looked like a small castle fortress. Just a single story tall and made of seamless stone. I could see crenellations on the roof where archers would be able to shoot from with a little cover. There were windows every few feet around the building, though they were also small, probably built that way as a defensive measure. They were just large enough to shoot out of but not large enough for someone human size to crawl through, plus the thick glass panes would slow anyone down. The doors, which were almost fully open now were made of thick wooden planks with iron banding. Secure and no doubt heavy, they seemed to swing with ease, either a feature of the game or Micaela’s construction was just that good.
From the now open doors, Micaela emerged holding up a shield over her head. The shield was split down the middle, half-black and half-white. In the center a golden bull’s head glared with red eyes. Behind the bull’s head a spear stood straight, it looked an awful lot like my spear, though this one had a strip of red cloth dangling with something written on it that I couldn’t see from my vantage point. There was also a pair of crossed axes. Unless I was mistaken, it was a coat of arms. The coat of arms for Micaela’s Order. It looked rather good in my opinion. The axes and bull’s head obviously represented her and her husband. As the leader and founder of the Order, it made perfect sense to me. But the spear, I assumed the spear was for me. I felt honored to be represented like that. It told me just how much they really valued me.
I hadn’t even noticed the cheering from the crowd until Olaf tried to wave at everyone to quiet down, allowing Micaela to speak, “Alright everybody, it’s the moment you’ve all waited for. The founding of my husband’s and my Order. As soon as the coat of arms is placed above the door, it will be official,” she said, then looking to Olaf she added, “Ollie, help me out here.”
Olaf grinned and moved to help, lifting the coat of arms into a space above the door while Micaela secured it in place.
“And with that,” Micaela said, stepping back and brushing imaginary dirt from her hands before continuing, “is how you do that.” She turned swiftly to face the crowd. “It gives me great pleasure to announce the formation of an Order of Service. The Order of Epic Grinders!”
I felt the blood drain from my face, a cold wave enveloped me, and chills ran down my spine even as the crowd cheered.
Micaela pressed on as soon as the cheering died down, “Alright, anyone interested in joining our Order, we’ll start interviews tomorrow morning. When you arrive, please form an orderly line and we’ll get you sorted. Any tanks, you’ll be speaking with Rose Thorns or Rock Dudson. Healers will speak with Duncan Donut or Arch Angel. Damage dealers will be speaking wi
th Bye-bye Jacko, Heath Rickards, Icyhot Jelloshot, or Pwn Star69. After preliminary interviews, Olaf and I will carry out final interviews for anyone wishing to join.”
I wasn’t sure if I heard any of what she had just said. I was too busy staring at the system message that just popped up.
You have been invited to join the ‘Order of Epic Grinders’
Do you accept this Order Invitation?
Yes
No
It wasn’t until I felt Rose shaking my shoulder that I realized she’d been calling my name. Or that I was now inside the Order House with the doors firmly shut.
“Jack? Jack!” Rose said, putting her hands to my face and directing me to look into her eyes.
I blinked several times.
“Just breathe, breathe,” Rose said soothingly.
“What happened? What is it?” Olaf asked, looking on in worry.
“You morons,” Rose snapped angrily. “Do you have any idea what you’ve done?”
“We made an Order,” Micaela answered confused. “I thought . . . I thought you were all excited about that?”
“You called it the Epic Grinders,” Rose hissed. “Do you have any idea how stupid that was? How much danger you put all of us in?”
“Danger?” Olaf questioned confusedly. “What danger? Is there some kind of hard mode activated because we called it something Epic?”
“No,” Rose snapped. “Real danger. Jack told you repeatedly, don’t call it Epic anything. In the beginning, it might have been just because the name annoyed him. But as of last month, that name has become really and truly dangerous.”
“I don’t understand, what are you talking about?” Micaela asked.